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Panasonic teams up with DIRECTV & NVIDIA to provide consumers the best 3D home entertainment system

Annie Chu's photo
NY DVD Examiner

Panasonic's 3D home entertainment system may be sparse on content with only a 3D demo disc compared to Samsung's starter package with the full feature film Monsters vs. Aliens 3D. However, Panasonic has strong partnerships offering excellent third-party 3D content. DIRECTV offers dedicated 3D content channels and special 3D programs. NVIDIA offers 3D PC gaming with hundreds of titles already available.

3 DIRECTV channels

One of the 3D HDTV setups was streaming DIRECTV 3D demo content. It included a trailer of Alice in Wonderland 3D, Toy Story 3 3D, ballet dancers and underwater ocean of fish. DIRECTV is partnering with Panasonic to give a free software upgrade to their HD customers in June 2010 and access to three 3D dedicated channels. This will be offered at no additional charge to DIRECTV customers. There will be a cinema and pay-per-view channel which will include movies and documentaries, an on-demand channel and a free 3D entertainment channel featuring sports, music and other content. Additionally, there is good news for ESPN subscribers. DIRECTV is adding ESPN 3D, the first 3D sports television network, to the lineup and will be available to ESPN subscribers at no additional cost. There will be a minimum of 85 events within the first year, including up to 25 matches from this summer's FIFA World Cup, X Games 16, and NBA, college basketball and college football games (including the 2011 BCS National Championship). The State Farm Home Run Derby telecast that will be airing on Monday, July 12 at 8 p.m. ET has also been added to the list of events that will appear on the new ESPN 3D network.

DIRECTV and Fox are working together to offer 3D early adopters the chance to see a baseball game LIVE in 3D! On July 13, 2010, the Major League Baseball All-Star game will be broadcasted in 3D for the very first time. On March 17, 2010 a test run was performed at the Angels Stadium in Anaheim, CA which will be hosting this year's game. They filmed local college baseball players in a mock game to figure out how best to approach this new challenge. Eric Shanks, the DIRECTV executive vice president explained that six cameras will be used. Ed Goren, Fox Sports president, expressed that Fox and DIRECTV will try to do adequate preparation work, but it may end up being a crapshoot on game day. They do hope it will be a success and future 3D content plans will depend on funding.

All in all, networks are definitely getting on board the 3D train and more 3D content should keep coming in the near future to make a 3D home theater purchase worthwhile.

3D gaming with NVIDIA


DIRECTV streams 3D content flawlessly.
Photo Credit: Annie Chu

NVIDIA was also on hand to demonstrate the wonders of NVIDIA® 3DTV Play, a 3D gaming software solution used with the Panasonic 3D equipment. Richard Surroz from NVIDIA pointed out that they have NVIDIA® 3D Vision™ equipment and software currently on the market already to give you 3D PC gaming capability and 450 titles to choose from. With the proper configuration using a NVIDIA 3D supported graphics card on the desktop computer and NVIDIA® 3DTV Play, you can hook the computer up to the 3D HDTV to experience gaming on a larger scale. Or you have the option to hook up a laptop such as Alienware with 3D supporting equipment. You can use the Panasonic 3D eyewear to view the games in 3D and NVIDIA is working with Panasonic to make their NVIDIA 3D glasses compatible with the Panasonic technology. They hope to configure their NVIDIA 3D glasses to work universally with all the different 3D HDTV configurations coming out on the market in the next few months. Right now the latest popular 3D game titles include World of Warcraft® – Wrath of the Lich King™, Battlefield Bad Company™ 2, and James Cameron’s Avatar™: The Game.

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Verdict

It is no wonder that Panasonic's VIERA® TC-PVT25 series won CNET's 2010 Best of CES award. Panasonic is definitely at the forefront of 3D technology setting the bar very high for other competitors. When the 3D home theater concept was first introduced, many consumers believed it was another fad that will attract only a select group of early adopters. After speaking with other consumers that had a chance to experience what Panasonic had to offer, 3D is definitely here to stay. Many were amazed at the picture quality and fine 3D detail; they compared it to be similar to what they would see at an IMAX 3D theater. So whether you are a 3D fanatic or just looking for good future-proof 2D HDTV, a 3D HDTV will accomplish both. With the fair prices and the excellent quality, there are many more reasons to purchase a 3D HDTV than just for 3D content alone.

Currently, you can test drive both the Panasonic and Samsung 3D home theater systems at Best Buy's Magnolia home theater stores. Best Buy sells their exclusive Panasonic VIERA® TC-P50VT20 3D 50" HDTV and Panasonic DMP-BDT300 3D Blu-ray player. It is a deriative model to the 2010 Panasonic Touch the Future Tour models showcased, Panasonic VIERA® TC-P50VT25 3D 50" HDTV and Panasonic DMP-BDT305 3D Blu-ray player. There are a couple of differences between Panasonic VIERA® TC-P50VT20 and VIERA® TC-P50VT25. Panasonic VIERA® TC-P50VT20 has a bezel with simulated brushed stainless steel finish and RS-232 interface to work with high end remote control systems such as Crestron. Panasonic VIERA® TC-P50VT25 has a bezel with dark simulated brass finish and no RS-232 interface. The difference between the Panasonic DMP-BDT300 and DMP-BDT305 3D Blu-ray player is only the DMP-BDT305 supports DLNA.

Best Buy pricing of its Panasonic full HD 3D viewing experience package starts at $2,899.99 and up. It will include everything that the consumer needs for all the components to work fluidly allowing for full appreciation of the 3D viewing experience:

  • Panasonic 3D-ready 50-inch VIERA® VT20 Plasma HDTV (MSRP: $2,499.95)
  • Panasonic 3D Eyewear (one pair included, additional purchased separately) (MSRP: $149.95)
  • Panasonic 3D-ready Blu-ray player (MSRP: $399.95)
  • Other extras at additional cost:
    • High-speed HDMI cable(s) 10.2 Gbps or higher
    • A/V receiver with HDMI 3D pass-through technology

There have been reports that some stores are already sold out of the initial stock, but more stock will come soon. By the response of early adopters, 3D has been welcomed warmly into the home and is here to stay for good.

The 2010 Panasonic Touch the Future Tour is on tour until April 17th, so stop by at one of the tour locations near you.

You can also check out both the Panasonic and Samsung 3D home theaters at Best Buy Union Square in New York City or any other Best Buy Magnolia Home Theater store location.

Back to Part 1: Panasonic tours the United States to promote the ultimate 3D HDTV home viewing experience

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Slideshow: 2010 Panasonic Touch the Future Tour (New York City)

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Overlaying frames produce 3D content when viewed through 3D active shutter glasses.

Slideshow: 2010 Panasonic Touch the Future Tour (New York City)

, NY DVD Examiner

Annie Chu is President of the renowned media specialty site, SteelBookHunterz.com, the first dedicated to SteelBook™ collectors worldwide. She is a frequent contributor to numerous Blu-ray and DVD-related sites. An avid collector, her personal collection contains well more than 1,000 Blu-ray,...

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